Robbing the Cradle
by the bean25
Summary: Don meets a young girl, and it turns into something he never expected. Flack, OCs some of the other NY characters. Updated Jan. 27th!
1. Found at a Crime Scene

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Don walked into the shop with his gun out in front of him. There were three uniformed officers behind him, also with there guns out.

"NYPD," Don yelled out as they made their way through the front of the store. He directed the officers to go to other parts of the store. Don pushed the back door open and searched around the room.

There was a young woman sitting in the corner, crying. Don looked around the room. "Where is he?" he asked her.

She sniffed a couple times then pointed to another door, which was labeled "emergency exit." She buried her head back into her arms on her knees. Don went out the door and looked back and forth down the alley. He saw nothing but called the other officers out to help her search everywhere.

When he came back inside, there was an officer standing next to the young girl in the back room. "Has she said anything?" Don asked him.

"No," the officer replied and shook his head.

Don knelt down next to the girl. "My name's Detective Flack. Are you ok?"

She lifted her head and nodded. "Yeah, I'm ok."

"We've got paramedics coming just to make sure." He stood and offered her his hand.

She took it and stood then crossed her arms as he walked her out of the store. They passed the body of the man who had been shot and he heard her gasp. He turned and put an arm around her shoulders to lead her out. A female EMT came over and took the girl to the ambulance. Don watched them as she walked away.

"Did we get him, Flack?" Danny asked as he approached.

Don shook his head. "He was gone by the time we got here." He pointed to the girl sitting on the back of the ambulance. "She was in the back room. I haven't talked to her much yet."

"But she's alright?"

"Yeah, she's doing better than our DOA inside."

Don led Danny and Stella inside to examine the body. He told them about the call dispatch got about gun shots and it was believed the suspect was still inside. He excused himself to go speak with the young girl. As he approached the girl was in the same position she had been on the floor now in the back of the ambulance.

"Miss, can I ask you a couple questions?" Don inquired as he flipped open his notebook.

She looked up at him but didn't say anything.

"Can you just walk me through what happened?"

"I, uh, I was in the backroom, stocking a new shipment. My boss, Mr. Russo, was in the front. I heard the door chime then a man yelling at Mr. Russo. They yelled for a little while then I heard the gunshot. I don't know why I didn't run out the back door. Well, the door has an alarm and if I ran out he would've heard the alarm and maybe come after me."

"Then did he come through the backroom, where you were?"

"Yeah I peeked through the door and he saw me then he came back and I curled up on the floor. I thought I was gonna die but then he heard the sirens and he ran out."

"The alarm wasn't going off when we got there."

"Well, it seems that my fears were worthless because the alarm doesn't work."

He smirked a little. "If we get a sketch artist could you give them a description of the man?"

"Yeah, I could do my best."

Later that day Don was in the lab, standing outside the room where the young woman, Riley Brown, was giving her description to the sketch artist. Stella walked up beside him.

"How's she doing?" she asked him.

"She's doing good. Hopefully what we get with the sketch will help us." He looked at Stella. "What've you got?"

"The bullet we pulled from the vic was a .22. And we got no hits in IVIS."

"Well I found that Mr. Russo had some ties to the mob. It's possible this was a mob hit, but I'm surprised you didn't find anything in IVIS if it was."

"It could just be a new gun. We'll find something." Stella's phone rang from the clip on her belt. She looked at it. "This may be good. I'll catch up with you later."

As Stella walked away the sketch artist came out and handed Don the sketch. Don thanked him then went inside the room. Riley was sitting in a chair in front of the table staring down.

"Are you ok?" Don asked her and her head shot up.

She smiled. "Yeah, I'm ok. So, how did I do?"

Don looked down at the sketch. "You did good. This is gonna be helpful." He looked at her again. "I can get one of the officers to take you home if you want."

She shook her head. "I can take the subway. Um, did anyone happen the get my things in the back of the store, or can I get them?"

"Oh, I don't think anyone did. We'll probably have to wait until the crime scene's been cleaned up."

"Oh, well, I actually really need my stuff soon."

"We'll get it to you as soon as we can."

She stood and started to the door. "Well, this has been a really bad day and I'm just gonna go home and sleep forever." She smiled and held out her hand to him. "It was nice meeting you."

He took her hand then opened the door. "It was nice meeting you. Thank you for all your help and I'll call if we need anything else."

She smiled and walked out of the room. Don watched her for a second as she disappeared down the hallway. He shook his head; of all times to find a cute girl, it had to be at a crime scene.


	2. Helping the Case

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

The next day Don called Riley for her to come to the precinct to get her bag that he had recovered from the crime scene. She told him she would be there soon. When she walked into the precinct, he noticed her looking around for him. Don got up from his desk and went over to her.

"Riley?" he said as he approached her.

"Oh, hi Detective."

"Call me Don. Come on, I've got your bag over here." He led her over to his desk.

She picked up the bag off of the chair and put it on her shoulder. "Thank you." She opened the top and looked inside. "I needed this badly."

"Those are school books?"

"Yeah, I go to Chelsea. Well, thanks, I gotta go."

"Hey, wait, uh we're getting close to finding the guy, and we may need you to look at a line-up for us."

"Yeah, I can do that. Just call me if you need me." She smiled and walked away. He watched her and was kicking himself for not saying what he wanted. Maybe it was a good thing she hadn't given him time to ask her out; he was better off keeping his mind on the job.

A few hours later they had their suspect in custody and decided they need Riley to come in for the line-up. Stella gave her a call and Riley agreed to come in. Stella, Don and the DA were waiting in the room next to the interrogation room. A uniformed officer opened the door and let Riley inside. Don watched her as she made her way past him with a smile. She was wearing dark jeans with heels and a dressy red top.

"Alright, Riley, just tell us which number is the guy that shot Mr. Russo. They can't see you, so don't worry about that," Stella told her.

Riley stared at the men through the glass. Then she looked at Stella. "Number three."

"You're sure?"

"Positive," Riley replied.

"Alright, well we'll get him for murder," the DA said from behind them.

"Is that all you need from me?" Riley asked, changing glances from Don to Stella and back again.

"Yeah, we're done," Don told her.


	3. A Romantic Gesture

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Riley's Prospective

Riley walked into her dad's house and kicked off her shoes as she went inside. She could hear the TV on in the living room. The office was empty and so was the dining room. When she got to the living room, she saw her younger brother, Derrick, sitting on the couch with a bowl of cereal in his lap.

"You're eating cereal? It's four in the afternoon," Riley commented and went to the kitchen.

"I was hungry and this was easy."

"Who are these flowers for?" she asked staring at the white roses on the counter.

"I don't know, look at the card."

Riley plucked the card off that was sticking out of the flowers. She pulled open the envelope and pulled out the card. She read it with a smile then put it on the counter. She pulled one of the dozen roses to her nose and breathed in the smell.

"So, who are they from?" Derrick asked as he came over to her.

"A guy who only had to ask." Riley turned from the counter. "Homework- is it done?"

"Yeah, I got it done and Sadie's upstairs doing hers. Dad said he'll be home in time for dinner."

"You know my questions."

"You ask the same ones every day when you come home."

Riley pulled a pound of hamburger from the freezer and put it on the counter. She watched her brother as he grabbed an apple from the refrigerator. "Derrick, we're gonna eat dinner soon."

"I'm hungry."

"You can wait," she told him and grabbed the apple from his hand and put it back.

Riley went up to her bedroom and threw her purse and book bag on the bed. She took her phone from her purse and Don's card. She sat at her desk and dialed the number.

"Yeah, Flack," he answered.

"The flowers weren't necessary. All you had to do was ask me out," she told him and smiled.

"Well, I had to say thank you too."

"Do you do that with all the girls who help you?"

"Uh, no not exactly."

"Well before I give you an answer on whether I'll go out with you. I have two questions."

"Ok, shoot."

"One, how old are you?"

There was silence for a minute. "I'm thirty."

"Two, how old do you think I am?"

"Uh, twenty-five?"

"A little lower."

"Maybe…I don't know."

"I'm twenty-two. And I still live at home, but there is a reason for it."

"Ok, well is eight years really that bad?"

She laughed. "I guess not."

"Why do you still live at home?"

"Well, my mom died a few months ago, so I moved back to help my dad take care of my younger brother and sister."

"I'm sorry to hear that, about your mom."

"Thanks. We're doing ok, now. So, pretty much I'm too young for you and therefore in a league you shouldn't be delving into."

"Can't I be the judge of that?"

She thought for a second. "I guess. I just don't think you and me is such a great idea."

"Wow, I was sure the flowers would work."

"Maybe a few years from now when my life is in order."

They said their goodbyes and Riley ended the call. She dropped her head onto the desk. She liked Don; he was cute and they probably would've been good together but she knew better than anyone that when it's not the right time, it just isn't.


	4. Hanging with the Girls

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Riley ran from the cab with her friends. They were all huddled under an umbrella as they ran. As they got close to the pub she noticed a group coming out. Riley stopped, forcing the other girls to stop as well.

"Don?" she said and he turned to look at her.

"Hey, Riley. What are you doing here?"

"One of my friends lives close by here so we decided to come down her for drinks. Are you with friends?"

Don turned then laughed. "Yeah I guess they decided to leave without saying goodbye."

Riley smiled. "You wanna come inside and grab a drink with us?"

Don looked at her for a second. "I thought we talked about-"

"Hey, it's just a drink. There's nothing else going on. Come on, it's raining." Riley grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. She held onto his hand as they got closer to the bar. Her friends were huddled together. "Hey, guys this is Don." Her friends said hello. "Don, this is Megan, Chelsea, and Jackie."

Don said hello to each of the girls and told them he was glad to meet them. They each got a drink from the bartender then made their way to a wooden booth. Two of the girls sat on either side of the table and Don pulled a chair up to the end. Riley watched him with fascination. She was interested in the way he interacted with her friends, and by the looks of things he didn't seemed to be acting much his age, but more as their equal. And the way he looked at her, she was beginning to think maybe she was wrong about the two of them, but she wasn't about to admit she was wrong.

After a few drinks Riley's friends were ready to go onto another club. Don told them it was late and he was ready to head home. As they stood outside the pub, Riley looked at her friends, then back at Don.

"You know, I'm kind of ready to go home too. I'll catch up with you girls later," Riley admitted to her friends as they stood on the sidewalk.

"Are you sure?" Chelsea asked.

"Yeah, I'll call you tomorrow." The girls got into a cab and Riley stood next to Don and watched them ride away.

"You didn't have to stay because of me," Don told her and she turned to look at him.

"Who said I did?" She looked up at him with a smile. "Walk me to my car?"

"Sure," Don replied with a smile in return.

Riley locked her arm in his as they walked down the sidewalk to the parking garage she had parked in around the corner. "So, I have an idea."

"Yeah."

"Let's be friends. I'd like to hang out with you, and if something happens between us, then it does but I'd rather be your friend to start."

"That sounds good to me."


	5. Uncomfortable

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

A few weeks later Don invited Riley to have drinks with him and his friends. She drove to the pub in the Lower East Side that Don had told her to meet them at. She breathed heavy a couple times; she was nervous because she knew Don's friends might be different and no want to hang out with someone who was younger than them. As Riley pulled into the parking garage across the street her phone rang. She glanced at the called ID, which said it was her dad. She shoved the phone back in her purse then pulled on her light jacket and got out of the car.

The small pub was packed with people. They were all older men and women, not her usual crowd of people. She suddenly felt as if the whole room was staring at her. Riley searched the crowd for Don and noticed him standing at the bar. She walked over to him as he picked up a couple drinks.

"Hey," she greeted.

Don was startled and almost dropped the drinks. "Hi, hey, how are you?"

"I'm good. You want some help with those?"

"No, I'm good. You want a drink? It's on me."

"Yeah sure. I'll just have a beer." Riley didn't like beer much, but she felt the need to impress Don and his friends, and not look like a martini-drinking "little girl."

"A beer? I've never seen you drink beer."

She smiled. "Well, I like a little of everything."

Don yelled the order to the bartender and handed her the beer and they made their way to the table where his friends and coworkers were sitting. Don looked back at Riley a couple times as they made their way through the crowd.

"You ok?" he asked her.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine."

He set the beers on the table and slid them to his friends. "You guys this is Riley."

"Hey, Riley," each one of them said to her.

"This is Stella, Danny, Lindsay, and Sheldon," Don said to Riley.

Riley shook hands with each of them. As she sat down her nerves slowly subsided. Don's friends didn't treat her like she was a lot younger than them then it occurred to her that maybe they didn't know how young she was. The conversation turned to a place she wasn't familiar with when they started to talk about work. She didn't say much and Don could tell she was uncomfortable.

Riley stayed quiet as they all talked about various things. Don looked at her a couple times then suddenly she excused herself from the table. She weaved through the crowd to find her way to the bathroom. She went into the stall and closed the lid on the toilet then sat on top of it. She pulled out her phone and dialed Megan's number.

"Meg, this is not going well. His friends have talked about everything I've never done. Or they talk about work and I have nothing to contribute."

"Riley, you're having drinks with people that are at least eight years older than you. What did you expect to happen?"

"I don't know," she paused. "I have an idea. Will you call me back in like ten minutes? Just so I can look at the caller ID and say I have to go."

"You are crazy. You're gonna ditch Don because you don't want to hang with his friends?"

"Please, Meggy. If you asked me to do this I wouldn't hesitate."

"God, why am I friends with you? Fine, I'll do it."

"Thanks. I'll talk to you later." Riley hung up her phone and put it back in her purse. She left the stall and straightened her hair and clothes before she left the bathroom. When she got out, Don was standing outside of the bathroom.

"Hey," he said as she stood in front of him.

"Hi," she replied, confused. "What are you doing?"

"You ok? You've been really quiet tonight, it's not like you."

"Yeah, I'm ok."

He took her hand. "Come on, what's wrong?"

She looked at him for a second in silence then shook her head. "You know this is kind of why I didn't want to get into this in the first place."

"What are you talking about?"

"Me, with your friends. I've got nothing in common with them and they have nothing in common with me. I feel like the younger sister with her big brother."

"Let's go then."

"What?"

"Yeah, I don't need to be here. I see these people all the time. You're a friend I don't see enough." He moved away from the wall. "Come on, let's go get some pizza or something."

Riley shook her head again. "You're too nice to me."


	6. New Year's Eve

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

A few months later Riley was leaving work at the law firm where her brother worked. She had gotten a job as an administrative assistant. It was New Year's Eve and Riley had a party to go to that night at one of her friend's apartment. She had the dress and shoes she planned to wear in the backseat.

"So, you're gonna come tonight, aren't you?" Riley asked Don over the phone as she drove.

"Yeah, I'm planning on it."

"I don't have time to go home and change. I hate this."

"You wanna change at my place?"

"Sure that would be good. I'm pretty close, I can stop by the precinct and get the key from you."

He was quiet for a second. "I can meet you somewhere."

"Can't I just come by? Oh, no you're embarrassed, aren't you?"

"Yes," he replied and laughed.

"Jerk. Now, I am coming by whether you want me to or not." She ended the call and threw her phone on the seat next to her. A few minutes later she pulled up across the street from the precinct. She grabbed her purse from the seat and ran across to the building. She was greeted by the sergeant at the front desk and Riley told her she was off to see Don. She passed a few uniformed officers and detectives in the hallway. As she walked into the room where the detectives had their desks, she looked around and noticed Don sitting at his desk on the phone. He saw her and hung up the phone.

"Hey there," Riley greeted as she sat on the edge of his desk. He looked around the room. "I can't believe you. Don't you think your coworkers would be impressed to see you with a younger girl?" she whispered as she leaned closer to him.

"Just promise you're not gonna make a scene."

She shook her head. "I can't believe you. Remind me why I'm taking you to a party with me tonight." She crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows at him.

"Sorry, I've just never had any girl come to the precinct."

She held out her hand. "Just give me what I came here for and I'll leave."

He stood and got closer to her. He set a key in her hand then put his face close to her. "I'll see you in a little while." He kissed her cheek.

Riley smiled. "I think, Detective, you are the one that made a scene." She got off the desk and walked away from him.

Riley unlocked Don's apartment and went inside. It was only the second time in three months she had been in his apartment. The first time with Danny and Lindsay there as well. They had played poker and drank. It was also the first time Riley had really been able to make a friendly connection with Danny and Lindsay. Riley kicked off her shoes and hung her jacket on the back of one of the dining room chairs. She walked into the kitchen and looked around. The apartment was tidy and clean. She smiled at the photos next to the couch on the end table. There was one of Don and his parents and one of the whole family at a wedding.

Riley took her dress and large cosmetic bag down the hallway to the bathroom. She changed into the knee-length black sequined dress first then stood in her bare feet in the bathroom as she straightened her hair. She was applying her make-up when she heard the front door open. She peeked down the hallway and noticed Don looking at her shoes and jacket.

"Hey," she yelled down the hallway.

"Hi, just make yourself at home, you know."

"I will, thanks."

He came in the bathroom and she looked at him through the mirror. "I like this." He looked at her dress. "Oh, by the way," he started as he walked toward the bedroom. "We were the talk of the precinct when you left."

"That was your goal, wasn't it?"

"Uh, it's possible."

"Hey, don't come in here till I'm done, ok? I want there to be a big reveal," she told him and giggled.

"Whatever, I'm just gonna take a nap till you're done."

"Don't you dare fall asleep."

Riley applied her make-up more so than usual then pinned her hair on the side. She slid on her silver heels then peeked at Don from inside the bathroom. She smiled at him then went into the bedroom. Don didn't turn to look at her until she cleared her throat to get his attention. He turned his head then lifted it off the bed.

"Oh, you look great," he told her. "You clean up good, Riley."

"I try," she replied shyly. "Come on, we gotta go." She offered him her hand.

He took her hand then smiled and pulled her down to him.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she lay on top of him.

"Uh, I was just…"

She stared into his eyes for almost a minute. His blue eyes were intoxicating. She hesitated then kissed his lips; the kiss lasted for a good minute before they parted.

"I guess, friends just went out the window," Riley commented and put her hand on his face.

"Yeah, it did," he replied and kissed her again then rolled them over so he was on top of her.

She put a hand on his chest. "We need to go."

"Go? Come on, we don't need to go to a party."

"I got all dressed up, though."

He sighed. "Fine," he moved onto his side and she sat up.

She put her hand on the side of his face. "Come on, Handsome, let's go make people jealous."


	7. Hangover

Riley woke up and the light made her wince. She put an arm across her eyes and moved her head back and forth on the pillow. She groaned and moaned in pain. Then suddenly she realized where she was and she looked around the room. She was in Don's bed; she looked at her clothes and she was wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt. Don was nowhere in the room. She looked at the clock, which read a few minutes after nine. She hesitated then threw the covers back and slowly sat up in the bed. As she got up her head continued to throb.

In the hallway she could hear the TV from the living room. She rounded the corner and saw Don spread out on the couch. He looked up at her and laughed then jumped up.

"Hey, are you ok? There was no stopping you last night," Don said to her as he came close to her and kissed her cheek.

Her eyes were barely open. "Shh, stop yelling."

He smirked. "Go lay down on the couch, I'll bring you some aspirin and coffee."

"Do you have lemon juice?" she asked and fell onto the couch.

"What?"

"You put lemon juice in the coffee and it helps, trust me. Do you have some?"

"I might," he replied and started to rummage through the refrigerator. "Hey, I found a lemon. I wonder why I bought that."

He brought the coffee and aspirin over to her a minute later and set it on the coffee table. Riley had her arm across her eyes.

"What did I do last night?"

"You had champagne, tequila, maybe a couple martinis. I lost count."

"Why didn't you stop me?"

"You were having way too much fun, and I admit I was having fun watching you."

She sat up and took the aspirin and swallowed down some of the coffee. "Oh so it was the mixing then?"

"Yeah, you tried to drive home. That's when I had to step in. Megan was going to have you stay there but I brought you back her because I didn't know if you would've stopped if I left you there."

"How did I get in these clothes?" she raised her eyebrows at him.

"I changed you. I slept out here; I had no plans of taking advantage of a drunk girl. It was tempting, though."

Riley fell back on the couch. "Just so you know this isn't me. I don't do this very often. I was having a good time last night."

"Oh, I know. You had a good time, but now you're paying for it. Lesson learned, huh?" He got up from the couch. "You want breakfast?"

She groaned. "Right now, I don't think I could eat anything."

"Maybe by the time I'm done, you will."

Don started in the kitchen. He started making scrambled eggs then went onto the bacon and the toast. Riley went to the table when he told her it was ready. She still didn't fell hungry but she decided to try a little. She put one foot on the chair as she ate.

"You don't have to work today?" Riley asked Don.

"I'm on call. And I'm sure I'll get called in. Do you want to do something today?"

"Uh, sleep. And then sleep some more."

"No showering or anything? Just laying around."

She nodded as she chewed. "That's my plan."

"I'd like to do something. Maybe we could go see a movie or something."

Riley jumped when she heard her phone ringing from her bag by the front door. "Oh, I bet I know who that is." She got up and went over to get the phone. Don watched her as she listened to the messages and shook her head.

"Let me guess," he looked at her and she rolled her eyes.

She hung up the phone. "My dad, he called three times, wondering where I was. I only listened to one- they are all the same." She sat back down across from Don. "I should really go home, at least to take a shower and get some new clothes to wear." He started to speak and she held up her hand. "Then, we can go out."

"I say you take a shower here and just wear the clothes you had on yesterday."

"Underwear, Don, I need clean underwear. And my dad-"

"Turn off your cell phone."

She looked at him for a while and furrowed her brows. "Why exactly are you trying to get me in trouble?"

Don got up from the table and went around to her. He took her hand and pulled her off the chair to him. He kissed her a few times. "Just call me trouble." He pulled her even closer to him and they kissed for a few minutes, her arms around him. A second later he picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He carried her down the hallway. She was giggling and kissing his neck.

Don dropped Riley down on the bed and she laughed. "You are trouble."


	8. Regaining Independence

Riley pushed the food around on her plate, looked at Don, then back down at her plate. He was focused on his food; he took bites but didn't say a word. They were sitting in a booth at a diner a couple blocks from Don's apartment. They had made arrangements earlier that day to meet for dinner, but now it seemed that it wasn't such a great idea.

Riley cleared her throat and Don finally looked her in the eye. "You ok?" Riley inquired.

He looked into her eyes for a second. "Fine," he replied and looked back down at his plate. He took a few more bites then pushed his plate away. "I'm just tired."

Riley stared at him. "There's something; I can tell, but I guess you don't want to talk to me about it."

"Riley, come on. I'm just tired," he responded with a stern voice.

The waitress set the check on the edge of the table and Don picked it up. Riley watched as he got up to pay at the counter then got up herself. She went past him and out the door. Don joined her; Riley kept her eyes forward.

"I'm going home," she told him.

He grabbed her arm as she started to walk away. "Wait, Riley, I'm sorry." She looked at him. "It's been a rough day."

She put her right hand on his cheek and he put his hand on hers. "I have something I want to show you."

Don followed her to the subway entrance a short distance down the block. They got off of the subway in Chinatown and Don followed Riley as she led him down a couple blocks to an older building. He was still confused as to where they were going. They went inside and he continued to follow her as they made their way up at least eight flights on stairs. Then they stopped on the fifth floor and Riley went over to the door of an apartment. She put a key in the lock then hesitated before she opened the door.

"I would like to welcome you," she opened the door, revealing the small apartment. "This is mine."

Don walked inside then Riley came in after him and locked the front door. Inside the front door they were in the eat-in kitchen and in front of them was the living room and beyond that was the open bedroom. It was small but she had already seemed to be able to make it look homey.

"This is yours?" Don asked still taking everything in.

"Yeah, it is. I moved a few days ago."

"Why didn't you tell me? I could've helped you." He turned to look at her as she took off her cardigan sweater and put it on the couch.

"I kind of needed to do this by myself. I'm trying to get back the independence I lost when I moved back into my dad's house." She walked around the couch and closer to the bedroom. "So, do you like it?"

"Yeah, I mean it's tiny, but yeah I like it. It's got a homey feel to it."

"I've been working hard to get that. You should've seen how many times Megan and I moved the couch to get it in just the right spot. But you have to see the best part." She waved him over to her.

Don walked over to where Riley had directed him to. She pointed. "What?"

"My shoes. Look at them. They have their own little cubbies; it's perfect."

Don shook his head. "You and your shoes." He looked around the small bedroom area; there was a Queen-sized bed with a trunk at the foot of it. The window seat had pillows at each end. Directly across the room from the bed was the little bathroom. He looked back at Riley. "Is this bed new?"

She looked at him, confused. "Actually, yeah."

He was pushing on the mattress with his back to her. He looked at her. "You wanna christen it?"

She smiled but still furrowed her brows. "And you seemed in such a pissed off mood just a little bit ago."

"Well, seeing a girl's new bed that's just asking to be broken in changes a guy's mood." He came close to her and kissed her a few times. "You know, though, if you wanted to move out so bad you could've moved in with me."

"Yeah, I know, but like I said I need my independence for a while."

"How's your dad gonna handle your brother and sister?"

"Well, Derrick goes to school in the fall so he'll just have Sadie. I'm sure he can deal, or at least he's gonna have to learn how to." She reached for his tie and began to loosen it then pulled him closer. "So, you said something about breaking in the bed?"


	9. Meeting Dad

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Don's cell phone rang from where it laid on his desk. He pulled on his jacket then checked the caller ID. He didn't recognize the number.

"Detective Flack," he greeted.

"Detective, my name is Connie I'm a nurse at Mercy General. I have a patient here named Riley Brown. She gave me your number to call as an emergency contact."

"Is she ok?"

"Yes, she was in a minor car accident. She sustained few injuries."

"I'll be there as soon as I can. Did anyone contact her family?"

"No this was the only number she gave us."

"Ok, thank you. I'll be there soon." Don ended the call then started down the hallway to the elevator. He realized in the elevator that he didn't have Riley's dad's number. There was a reason, though, that she had given the nurse his number; Riley obviously didn't want her dad there.

Don parked in the garage attached to the hospital then made his way inside. He went into the ER and asked for Riley's room. A nurse gave him the room number and he went down the hallway scanning the numbers on the doors. Finally, at the end of the hall he came to Riley's room.

"Hey, are you ok?" he asked as he approached her bed.

She was sitting up. "Yeah, I'm ok," Don kissed her careful of the cuts and bruises on her face.

"What happened?"

"I was driving home from the gym and some guy hit me from the side. He ran a stop sign coming out of an alley. My leg's broken, and I'm in quite a bit of pain."

He took her hand. "I was a little scared."

Riley cocked her head to one side. "Scared? Not a tough detective like you."

"We still get scared every once in a while." He looked down at their hands. "Do you want me to call your dad?"

Riley sighed. "This is a hell of a time for him to meet you, or even find out about you."

He looked at her and raised his eyebrows. "He doesn't even know you're dating someone?"

"I didn't think he needed to know."

Don shook his head. "Now's a good a time as any. We can have the nurse call him."

Riley put her head back. "Yeah, I guess. Just be prepared."

"I can handle it."

A few minutes later one of the nurses came in to check on Riley and Don politely asked her to call her father; he briefly explained the situation and she agreed. He pulled a chair next to Riley's bed and talked to her for a while about the details of the accident. It was almost a half an hour later when her dad came in the room with her younger brother and sister in toe.

"Riley, are you ok?" he asked as he approached his daughter.

"Yeah, Dad, I'm ok," she replied.

He looked at Don then back at Riley. "Who's this?"

"Uh, Dad, this is Don Flack, he's my boyfriend."

Don smiled as her dad stared at him. Then he turned to his daughter. "Excuse me, boyfriend? How long has this been going on?"

"Um, a few months."

"What's a few months, Riley?" his tone was starting to turn annoyed.

"Uh, like four."

"And I'm just now finding out about this? What is it with you, Riley? Suddenly you decide to move out then this happens and I find out you have a boyfriend, which you've kept from me for months."

Riley's facial expression didn't change and either did her tone. "Can I ask you something? How old am I?"

"That doesn't mean anything, you should still-"

"Dad, how old am I?"

"You're twenty-three."

"Doesn't that mean I'm old enough to lead my own life and make my own grown-up decisions?" She didn't give him a chance to reply. "So, let's try this again. Dad, this is my boyfriend, Don Flack." She looked at Don. "Don, this is my Dad Michael Brown."

Her dad turned to look at Don. He seemed to be assessing him before he stuck his hand out to him. "It's nice to meet you."

Don smiled and accepted his hand. "It's nice to meet you, too sir."

Riley had a smile across her face. "And this is my brother, Derrick, and my sister, Sadie."

Don greeted each of the two younger children. Riley's family stayed for an hour before they decided it was late and they needed to get home. Her dad kissed her forehead and shook Don's hand before he followed his children out of the room. Don sat back down next to his girlfriend and sighed heavily.

"Well, that was interesting," he commented.

Riley smirked and put her hand on his cheek. "You stood there and observed very well."

"I was kind of scared. I thought maybe you were gonna jump out of this bed and really stand up to your dad."

"It's times like that when I really wish my mom was still around to back me up. She always had my back with my dad. She would've been so mad if she knew I moved back in after she died; she wanted me to have my independence."

"I can usually handle the moms because they think I'm cute, but dads I can tell them all day that I'm a detective and they still won't trust me."

"I've been telling you all along that you're trouble." Riley laughed.


	10. An Emotional Day

Don walked into Riley's apartment; she was racing around throwing things out of her way. She seemed to be looking for something.

"Lose something?" Don asked as he approached her in the bedroom.

She threw away the pillows on the window seat. "I can't find it, Don, I can't find it anywhere."

"What, Riley?" He put a hand on her shoulder. "Babe, what did you lose?"

"The ring," she replied frantically. "I lost my mom's ring." She stopped and sat on the window seat. "I've looked everywhere." She started to sob.

Don sat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders. "Did you retrace your steps, everywhere?"

"I did," she looked at him as tears came down her cheeks. "What's the likelihood that I would lose it on the one-year anniversary of her death?"

Don kissed her temple then her head fell into his shoulder. "It's ok, I'll look for you," he told her and got up. He started in the kitchen then made his way to the living room, and then the bedroom and finally the bathroom. It was about fifteen minutes after he started when he came out of the bathroom and held out his hand to her. The sapphire ring was lying in his palm.

She looked up at him in shock. "I can't believe…where did you…"

"It was behind the toilet. I figured you probably got too frantic and just passed over it." He sat down next to her again as she slipped it onto her finger. "You ok?"

She sighed. "I don't know. Today's been pretty rough." She rubbed the tears from her face.

"Have you talked to your dad yet?"

"No, but Derrick called me this morning and said Sadie cried all morning before she went to school today. I don't regret moving out, but maybe I should've been there today."

"Do you really think you being there would've made it easier? They miss your mom, just like you and Landon do. Just because you and Landon are older doesn't mean it should be easier, or that you can really make it better for your brother and sister."

She stared at him for a second. "If it was you, though, wouldn't you want to be there for your younger sister?"

"Yeah, I would. I know, I should just keep my mouth shut; I've never been in this situation I don't know what it's like."

She kissed his cheek. "I know you're trying to help, and I appreciate that." She took his hand. "Come on, we're gonna be late for dinner."

"I still can't believe you're taking me to dinner at your dad's on the anniversary of your mom's accident. Shouldn't this be a family thing?" he said as he stood.

Riley grabbed her heels and slid them on. "You're family to me; you're allowed to be there too."

At dinner Don decided that getting on Riley's dad's good side was a losing battle, so he decided to appeal to her siblings. Her younger brother, Derrick, was sitting across from him.

"So, when's school over guys?" Don asked, looking at Sadie and Derrick.

"Two more weeks," Sadie answered enthusiastically.

"I bet you guys are excited. Derrick, did you decide on a school?"

"Yeah, Boston University," he responded and almost simultaneously his dad cleared his throat.

"Dad," Riley said quietly and glared at her dad.

That reaction from both his girlfriend and her father made Don decide to drop the conversation. Landon started a conversation about a different subject after only a moment of silence. Don just stayed quiet as the family talked. Landon's wife, Janet, brought out dessert when the conversation turned to her cooking. Don put his hand on Riley's thigh and she put her hand on his.

"I love you," he whispered in her ear then got up with Landon and Janet to begin clearing the table.

Don was helping Riley's family clean up the dishes from their dinner in the kitchen when he realized Riley and her dad weren't in the room. He could slightly see them in the living room. Riley was sitting on the couch and her dad across from her.

Don had Riley alone for the first time when they were in his car on the way home. She was silently looking out the window. Don knew she had been an emotional wreck the whole day, so he wasn't quite sure whether she wanted to talk.

"Turn up here please, to the right," she finally requested, breaking the silence.

Don did as she asked without even looking at her.

"It's up here on the left, turn in here," she said and again he did as he was told.

Don noticed he was in a cemetery. She told him exactly where to go. He parked the car and turned off the engine. He realized they were in the cemetery where her mom was buried. He watched her get out of the car and walk down the grassy slope. He contemplated for a second then decided to get out of the car. He reached in the glove compartment and grabbed a flashlight.

When he walked up behind her, he flashed the light on the polished stone. Riley brushed away the grass and leaves. She fell onto the ground on her knees.

"Mommy, I miss you so much," she cried and put her hands to her face. "Dad, he's so lost without you. I can tell he's scared to raise Derrick and Sadie without you." Don put his hand on her shoulder and swallowed over the lump in his throat. "I don't know…I don't think I can do this. Why did you have to die?" She sobbed continuously.

Don dropped to his knees beside her and pulled her to him. He kissed her cheek then her forehead. She cried into his shoulder.

"My dad told me he's scared about raising Sadie by himself. My mom's dead, Landon's married, I moved out, and now Derrick's leaving too," she told him as she lifted her head.

"Riley, you have to stop doing this. This isn't something you can control."

"It's just my dad looks to me for some reason to help him make it better but I can't," she wiped her eyes. "Not without losing my independence. But I want to help…I just don't know how."


	11. His Intentions

Don was walking up to his parents' house. He was alone and he was on a mission. It had been a little after a year since he and Riley had started dating. She was at her apartment packing for the trip she and Don were taking to visit her brother for a long weekend. He had called his parents earlier that day to ask them if he could stop by and maybe have dinner.

He stomped the snow off his shoes onto the mat on the front porch. He knocked on the door as he opened it. When he got inside, he could smell the food his mom was preparing.

"Ma, Pop?" he called as he hung his coat on the rack.

"In here Donny," he heard his dad reply.

Don started through the living room toward the kitchen. His dad was standing at the sink and his mom was pulling a dish out of the oven.

"Hey, son. You want a drink?" his dad asked as he was drying his hand.

"Yeah, that sounds good."

The two men moved into the dining room. Don's mom brought a couple dishes out to the table a few minutes later. They sat down and began to eat. They talked for a while, mostly about Don's job.

"So, why isn't Riley with you?" Don's mom finally asked.

"She's at home, packing for a trip we're taking this weekend. I didn't really tell her I was coming here anyway."

"What do you mean?" Don Sr. asked.

"Well, I came over to ask you for something," he paused. "I wanted to ask for grandma's ring."

"Your grandma's wedding ring?" his mom responded.

"Yeah, I want to ask Riley to-"

"Oh gosh, Donny, that's great." His mom was smiling from ear to ear.

Don smiled, looked at the table then back at his parents. "I asked her dad a couple days ago. Let me tell you that was interesting. He hasn't always been the nicest to me."

"But he said 'yes' obviously he sees something in the two of you. I'm sure he's realized that you make Riley happy and she makes you happy," said his dad. "Why don't you help your mom work on the dishes and I'll go get the ring?" His dad got up from the table and Don and his mom stood to collect the dishes.

Ten minutes later, Don went out to the living room with his parents and his dad handed him a small black box. He opened the box and looked down at the antique ring. He knew Riley would love the ring. He thanked his parents for the ring and dinner then left the house and headed back to Riley's apartment.

Instead of going straight to Riley's apartment headed toward Danny's instead. He hadn't even told Danny he was interested in asking Riley to marry him. Now he had the ring, so it was definitely past the time to inform his best friend of his intentions.

He knocked on Danny's front door. Danny answered with a shocked look on his face. Don went inside and was somewhat surprised to not see Lindsay in the apartment.

"What's going on man?" Danny asked as they walked toward the living room.

"I need to tell you something and I didn't really want to do it over the phone. It's nothing bad, it's actually really great news."

"Ok," Danny had a confused look. He plopped down on the couch and propped his feet on the coffee table.

Don sat across from him in the recliner. "Well, I," he pulled the black box from his pocket. He threw it to his friend.

"Don, I know we're best friends and all but, you know, Lindsay might get a little jealous." Danny laughed.

"Shut-up, man. I'm gonna ask Riley to marry me, this weekend when we go to Boston."

Danny tossed the box back to Don. "You're ready for that?"

"That's not really what I was expecting. I was thinking more along the lines of 'that's awesome, congratulations.'"

"Sorry." Danny chuckled. "I see you're ready, but do you think Riley is?"

"We'll find out, won't we?"

Don walked into Riley's apartment an hour later. The apartment was mostly dark. He locked the door behind him then turned off the lamp in the living room. The TV was on and Riley was lying in the bed.

"Hey, where've you been?" Riley asked as she watched Don take off his jacket.

"I went to my parents' after I got off then went to Danny's for a bit." He stripped off his clothes and laid them on the trunk at the end of the bed.

"Why'd you go to your parents'?"

"I had to pick something up." He got into the bed, took the remote from her and turned off the TV.

"What was it?"

He reached over her and turned off the lamp next to her. "It's a surprise."


	12. Surprise in Boston

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Don was sitting in the kitchen of Riley's apartment, drinking his coffee when his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID, sighed, and answered it. He talked for a few minutes then hung it up. Riley came out of the bathroom a minute later wrapped in a blue towel. Don thought for a second then decided her had to do what he had to do.

"Hey, Riley," he said as he walked into the bedroom.

"Yeah?" she replied as she pulled some clothes from the dresser.

"I have some bad news. I got called into work."

She turned to look at him. "I thought you had the weekend off."

"Yeah, but they're short-handed right now. We've got a lot of detectives on some big cases, so they need me."

Riley sighed and forced a smile. "It's ok I'll just go by myself." She put a hand on his cheek. "We'll get another romantic weekend some time."

"You're too understanding," he looked at her for a second. "Hang on, let me go call someone and see if they can cover for me." He walked back to the kitchen and pressed a speed dial. He talked for a second then came back over to Riley. "No, sorry, Angell can't do it."

"Really, it's ok."

Don took her into his arms. "I love you, you know that right?"

"Of course, I do and I love you too. I'll miss you this weekend. We'll have some drinks for you."

Don dressed in his jeans and a t-shirt then headed to his apartment to get ready to go to the crime scene in Harlem. He was extremely disappointed that he wasn't going to be able to spend the weekend with Riley. As he was leaving the apartment he called the Crime Lab to tell them he would need CSIs at the scene.

After Don got all the information from the officers on the scene and he analyzed it himself, Stella and Danny showed up. Don shared with them the information about the scene then told them he was going to interview witnesses.

"I thought you were going to Boston with Riley this weekend?" Danny inquired as he saw Don approached out of the corner of his eye.

Don shook his head. "And if I wasn't here I'd be on the train with her right now."

"Sorry, man."

"If we wrap this up super fast maybe I can meet her there and surprise her."

"Weren't you gonna ask her this weekend, too?"

"What were you gonna ask her?" Stella inquired as she walked back over to the guys.

"Oh, uh, well there's a ring involved," Don responded keeping his eyes on his notebook.

"Don, you're gonna ask her to marry you? That's great."

"Yeah, well it's not gonna happen this weekend like I planned." Don rubbed his eyes. "Let's just get this done."

It was a good ten hours later that they finished up the case. Don called Penn Station and he still had time to catch the last train to Boston. A few hours later, Don was in Boston at Hotel Commonwealth, where he and Riley had made their reservations for the weekend. It was after eleven and it took the concierge a while to believe him that he was who he was and that the woman who had checked-in already was with him.

When Don got up to the room, he opened the door and made his way inside. He didn't want to scare Riley, but he realized he was going to no matter what he did. He saw her lying in the bed, the TV at the foot of the bed quietly playing. Don slid his bag off his shoulder then went over to the bed. He kissed Riley's cheek and neck. She slowly opened her eyes then they opened wide.

"Oh my gosh," she exclaimed.

Don chuckled. "Sorry," he replied.

"What- what are you doing here?" Riley lifted her head, blinking a couple times.

He leaned down and kissed her. "I got done earlier than I thought and I missed you." He stood and undressed to get in the bed with her.

Riley yawned and pulled the covers up to her face then rolled onto her side and yawned again.

"Did you see your brother?" Don asked as he curled up close to her under the blankets.

"Yeah, when I got here he was in a class, so we met afterwards for dinner and we got a drink too," she smiled. "I'm so glad you came. It was a good surprise." She curled up next to him and he kissed her forehead.


	13. Missed Her Too Much

Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters. I write way too many stories about Flack, but I just can't help it. I hope you enjoy this and please drop me a review.

Don woke up the next day and looked around the hotel room. He expected to see Riley lying next to him or at least in the room. She was nowhere around the room. He pulled the blankets off then started to get out of the bed. He walked over to the window and looked down at the harbor. The sun was starting to shine on the water, which was moving with the boats riding through. Then he looked down at the parking lot; Riley was running toward the hotel.

A few minutes later Riley walked into the hotel room. She pulled off her stocking cap, and looked at Don who was sitting in one of the chairs by the window with a cup of coffee. He was staring at her.

"Hey," Riley greeted and pulled off her jacket.

"You ok?" Don asked.

She gave him a confused look. "Yeah," she kissed him. "I'm fine, why?"

"It's just every time you go running it's because there's something wrong. So, what's buggin' you today?"

Riley sat on the bed and began to take off her shoes. "Nothin' I'm fine."

"You're such a bad liar."

She looked at him. "Fine," she got up and went over to him. She sat down on his lap. "I am, well, I planned a trip. I'm going to Georgia after we're done here in Boston."

"How long you gonna be gone?"

"Uh, I'm not sure, maybe a week. I just haven't seen my mom's family since she died and I need them to know I haven't forgotten about them. You understand, right?"

He kissed her. "Yeah, babe, I get it. I just don't know what I'm gonna do without you for a whole week."

Their weekend in Boston was as much fun as they thought it would be. Don had had an opportunity to get to know Derrick well and have some fun. It was a nice two days away from work not just physically but he didn't think about it the whole time.

Riley put her suitcase in the back of the car she had borrowed from her dad to drive to Georgia. Don was standing next to her. He put a hand on her back as she slammed the lid shut.

"I'm gonna miss you," he told her.

"It's only a week," Riley responded and put a hand on his cheek. She stood on her toes to kiss him. "You better not eat out every night while I'm gone."

He laughed at her. "No, but me and Danny might just go out every night."

She shook her head. "I don't think Lindsay will have that at all." She kissed him again. "I better go. I love you. Be good."

"You be good." He watched her get in the car and he waved her off as she drove away in the small white car.

It only took Don a few days before he was missing Riley. He hadn't been able to propose to her. The ring had been in his pocket the whole weekend in Boston and now it was lying on the dresser; he was staring at it while he watched TV. Now it was a week she had been gone and the fact that he still wasn't engaged was killing him. He was lying on the bed, bored and tired. He stared at the ring box again. Don jumped off the bed and pulled on his shoes. He grabbed his jacket and the ring box.

The last time he had talked to Riley was that morning and she told him she was on her way home. As he got in the car he dialed on his phone.

"I need a GPS on a cell the number is 212-555-0225," he listened as the operator told him where the signal was. She told him it was moving and then he told her he would call back.

Don was in Virginia a few hours later. He had called the operator again to find out where the signal was. He pulled into the parking lot of the small diner. He noticed Riley's car. When he walked in he went to the counter and described Riley to the woman behind the counter and she pointed to her sitting in the last booth. The sun was shining through the window behind her head, making her hair look golden brown. Don smiled and went over to her. She was reading as she ate something he usually disliked when she did it at home.

"Hey, Riley," he greeted.

She looked up and gave him a "deer in the headlights look." "Don, what are you doing here?" She stood up and kissed him.

"I missed you. I know this seems kind of weird. You left Boston and I needed to do something." He stared into her eyes. "Sit back down."

"Are you ok?"

Don didn't answer but kept her gaze as he knelt down on one knee in front of her. "Riley Elizabeth Brown, I love you with all my heart. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

Riley looked at the ring he had pulled out then back at him. She put her hand to her mouth. "Yes," she whispered.

"What?"

"Yes," she yelled out. Don stood and hugged her closely. They pulled apart and he slid the ring on her finger. They stared into each other's eyes. Then suddenly they heard the whole restaurant clapping for them. Don leaned down and kissed her again. Riley giggled as Don held her hand in the air and everyone cheered louder.


End file.
